Page 53 of Kissed By Shadows

My brows raise, my eyes widening when I recall the incident a couple of years ago when someone stole our Rolls. Straightening up, I look at Hunt, who’s stopped his stretches and there’s a flush on his cheeks that I’m damn sure isn’t due to the light exercise we’ve been doing.

“Did you have anything to do with my dad’s Rolls going missing a couple of years back?” I ask, watching as the blush deepens and he rubs the back of his neck.

“Shit! I’d forgotten about that,” Roman exclaims from in front of me, and I whip to face him, my eyes narrowed. “Made a pretty penny from that one too.”

“Bastard!” I hiss, whacking him on his rock-solid pec, pain shooting up my hand. Fucking double bastard with his stupid muscles.

“Awww, don’t be salty, Princess. You got a new one the next day,” Roman teases, and I huff, though he’s standing up and pulling me to my feet in the next moment. “Time to train.”

I pointedly look down at the massive boner he’s not even trying to hide, then back up at his face.

“Seems like you’ve got an issue, Ro. Shame that you’ll only have your right hand to sort it out,” I tell him, deciding that leaving them with blue balls for a bit is a fitting punishment for stealing my dad’s car.

He gives me what can only be described as a devil’s smirk, using his grip on my hands to pull me flush with his body.

“You forget that I don’t need your permission or consent, Princess. I could fuck you right here, in the middle of the gym, and there would be nothing you could do to stop me,” he whispers in a low purr that does terrible things to Evangeline. The threats really shouldn’t be hot, there are so many red flags with what he just said I should be running a mile away.

Instead, I practically melt into him, my lips parting as heat fills me up from my toes to the top of my head. His gaze darts down to my hardened nipples, and his smirk widens before he releases me and saunters off, erection bobbing for the whole world to see.

I stare after him, shivering when a hot body presses against my back.

“He’s right, Peaches. You gave us permission to use you whenever and however we like, so your threats are empty,” Hunter murmurs, his large hand landing on my waist and squeezing.

“I–I have a lock on my door,” I stutter out, licking my lips as I try to reclaim some sort of upper hand. He huffs a laugh,his warm breath fanning across my skin and making my core tighten.

“If we can steal a high-end Rolls Royce from your driveway, do you really think a lock will stop us?” Pressing a kiss to my temple, he lets go of my waist, taking my hand and pulling me in the direction that Roman went, the sound of Rowan’s footsteps following behind us.

I am so fucked with these men, and I really don’t give a shit.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“DEVIL LIKE ME” BY AKINE

NIKOLAI

It’s only the memory of Iris’s sweet body that keeps me going over the next few days of what can only be described as pure torture. I’m beaten, nearly drowned, and then left chained up outside naked as the world freezes around me. The shivers have long since stopped when shiny black shoes appear in my vision.

It almost takes more energy than I possess to lift my head to look at my sire, the man who gave me life but seems determined to try and snuff it out at any opportunity.

“You are lucky, Nikolai. If you were anyone else, you’d be dead,” he casually tells me, Dima and Andrei coming up either side of me having come in with my father. Sergi crouches down, reaching into the pocket of his black cashmere coat and pulling out a small key. Almost tenderly, he reaches out, slotting it into the lock that holds the metal collar around my neck. With a small snick, it opens, the collar and the chain that’s attached toit rattling as it falls to the ground and it takes almost more than I possess not to go limp and show him any weakness. “Do not fail me again, or those Shadows won’t be the only ones to pay for stealing what didn’t belong to them.”

A shiver breaks over me that has nothing to do with the cold air surrounding me. What is he planning? And what happened while I’ve been tied up like an offering to winter?

Standing up, he casts a final, almost emotionless look down at me before turning on his heel and striding away. Warmth surrounds me as my coat is thrown over me, strong hands grasping underneath my arms and pulling me to my frozen feet. I grit my teeth hard as pain flares across my whole body, though it’s not as strong as I know it should be. I probably have the beginnings of hypothermia. It’s not a condition that is new to me, so I recognise the symptoms.

“We need to get you warm, but we’ll have to do it slowly so as not to shock your system,” Andrei says as they practically drag me along the path back towards the house.

I can’t respond, not even to ask if there has been any news on Iris and what Sergi plans to do with her. All I can do is hold on to the last of my consciousness as we enter the house, the warmth like a blazing fire against my freezing skin.

“INTOXYCATED” BY OXLADE FEAT. DAVE

IRIS

I’m a hot, sweaty mess by the time we’re done at the gym, and not in the attractive, just-fucked way. Nope, it’s the I-can’t-fucking-breathe-I’m-going-to-die way.

“You’re not going to die from a workout, Little Lamb,” Rowan scolds, and I crack my eyes open to find all three of them looming over me as I lay sprawled on one of the mats, trying to remember how to breathe.

“I. Might,” I huff out, moaning as I try to move. Everything aches, and I am not a fucking fan.

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